Match book holder



Sept. 29, 1953 A. D. HALL MATCH BOOK HOLDER 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed July 14, 1950 INVENTOR ANDREW p. HALL ATTORNEYS Sept. 29, 1953 A. D. HALL MATCH BOOK HOLDER 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed July 14, 1950 INVENTOR ANDREW D. HALL I may} ATTORNEY Patented Sept. 29, 1953 UNIT ED S TAT E S PAT ENT F F I C E 2,653,705

MATCH BOOK HOLDER Andrew Di Hall, Riverdale, N. Y..

Application July 14', 1950; Serial No; 173,709

1 Glaim. 1,

This invention relates to cases for match packets and more particularly to cases wherein. themain body is provided. w'ith-ahinged' cover to enclose the headsof the matches;

At the present time, book matches are commonly used which are made of cardboard and secured in packageform within an envelope or container, adapted to be foldedwith its tabor free end below a fixed portion and" having upon its outer exposed surface an igniting compound upon which the head of thematch is scratched when bein lit. Such matches are commonly used as advertising devices and the packets being thin and compact are easily carried in the pocket; however; they collect dust, become bent, mingle with other articles disadvantageously and if subjected to moisture deteriorate and becomeuseless furthermore the igniting surface, being of paper, does not possess the desirable rigidity that a striking surface should.

An object of the present invention is to pro-- vide a case for match packets comprised of only two pieces adapted toreceive'the" match packets and permitting matches to be extracted'as desired.

A further object of thepresent'inv-ention is to provide a case-for matches having a pivoted'cover' which normally encloses theheads ofthe matches,

in which the cover is en'stuatecl' by" a spring that is:

integral with the case.

A still further object of the present invention is to provide an all'plastic case for matches comprised of two parts which may be readily and.

inexpensively molded and-assembled into the final form.

Other objects and the nature and advantages" of the instant invention will be apparentf'romoi'Fig. 1 showing the match. packet therein and.

the cover shown indotted lines in the open position;

Fig. 3 is atop plan view otthe case;

Fig. 4 is a detail section along theline 4-'-4'of; Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a rear elevational view of the case;

Fig. 6 is a: perspective view of the case showing the match packet therein;

Fig. '7 is a front elevational view ofv a modified form of the invention;

Fig. 8 is asectional view takenalong line 8-'8 of'Fig'. '7 wherein the'cover is shown in the open position in dotted lines;

Fig. 9 is a rear elevationalview of the modified form of case shown in Fig; 7; and

Fig; I0 is a sectional view similarto Fig; 8 showing a stiili further modifiedform of the invention.

Referring to the drawings in detail, the match packet'shown in Figs. 2 and fi comprises sheets of heavy paper'or cardboard l0 which are slitted to form the match" splints II- which. are provided in turn attheir outer ends with the heads l2. A packet cover I3- is on the match packet, being formed at its lowerend-i'nto a short flap I4 which is' bent over the lower ends of the paper sheets I'D; being usually fastened to these sheets by means, such as a staple; which holds them all together. The heads-oi the matches are adapted to ignite upon being forcibly passed over the surface of igniting material I 5 disposed on the short flap These partsare of ordinary-construction and do not constitute any part of the invention which will now be described;

The body portion IG- of the case is tapering in form to accommodate the match packet describedabove; The body IS includes a back wall l1, bottom wall It, side walls l9 and top wall 20. The body leis molded-froma plastic material and may be transparent or colored as desired. It is desirable that the plastic material used be noninflammable for safety purposes;

The back wall IT of the body l-G' is slotted at 2| and 22, each slot beginning at the topand extending down about one-half the length of the case. Each slot is rounded at the bottom thereof as shown at 21", 2 2. The center portion 23 of the back wall between the two slots 2|, 22 acts as a spring which is utilized for maintaining the cover 24 of the casein closed position. The top wall. 20" of the. portion 23 is shorter than the remainder of: the top wall 20 and extends forward only about one-half the distance that the remainder of the top walldoes.

The side walls Hla-rethicker at the lower portion as shown. at point 2-5 than at the upper por tion 2.6,; At the bottom portion, the'side walls [9 are each provided with a projecting shoulder 21, best shownin Fig. 4. The'l'owerend oi the match packet is inserted between the shoulders 21 and the back wall I 1 of the case, andthe shoulders 27 serve to retain the match packet in position. At approximately the middle portion of the side walls, there is provided a shoulder 28 extending back to about one-half thedepth of the side wall. A stop 29 ri'sesfrom the shoulder 281a short distance, and acts. as the surface against which the lower end or. the cover is incontact whenin the closed position. The side walls I 9 decrease. in thicknessattheshoulder and stop. 29 fromthat shown at litothethickness. at; 26.

Each side wall 19 is provided with a small round indentation 30 near the top thereof located at a point nearer to the front of the side wall than to the rear wall IT. The indentations 30 are adapted to receive the pins 3| on the cover 24 and act as pivot points about which the cover rotates. An opening 32 is provided in the back wall l7 behind each of the shoulders 21. The openings 32 are necessary to provide the shoulders 2! in the molding process.

The cover 24 may likewise be molded of plastic material. The cover fits into the space between the thin side wall portions 26 and extends from the shoulders 28 in the side walls to the top of the body adjacent the indentations 30. A pin 3! is formed integral with the cover 24 extending outwardly at each side thereof near the top of the body. The pins 3| are adapted to fit into the indentations 30 in each of the side walls. Due to the slots 2 I, 22 in the back wall, the upper end of the body I at each side is somewhat resilient and may be forced outwardly a sufficient amount to enable the pins 3| to be inserted into the indentations 30, after which the body returns to its original position preventing the removal of the cover from the body. The cover pivots about the pins 3| so that when the cover is lifted about the pivots the match heads are uncovered and permit the removal of a match when desired. An extension 34 is provided at the center portion of the bottom of the cover 24 to serve as a handle to facilitate the lifting of the cover. The bottom surface 35 of the cover contacts the top surface 29 when in the closed position.

In the form of the invention shown in Figs. 1 to 6, a cam 36 is formed integral with the top of the cover 24 extending upwardly from the center portion of the cover fitting between the slots 2| and 22. The cam 36 extends into the space in front of the shorter portion of the top wall 20' and is in contact therewith. The cam is so shaped and positioned that when the cover is in the closed position as shown in full lines in Fig. 2 the curved surface of the cam 36 is in contact with the outer edge of the top wall 20. As the cover 24 is raised to the intermediate dotted line position of Fig. 2, the curved cam surface forces the spring portion 23 of the back wall to the rear so that when the cover is released, the spring will tend to return to its original position and will thus force the cover closed. If the cover is raised to the upper position shown in dotted lines in Fig. 2, the cam will force the spring still further back until the pointed end 36 of the cam comes into engagement with the inner surface of the top wall 23', and the cover is thus retained in the open position until it is manually lowered to the point where the pointed end of the cam will clear the inner surface of the top wall 29'. The spring action of the back wall 23 will then force the cover to close so that the lower end 35 comes in contact with the stop surface 29.

If desired, the stop surface 29 could be placed adjacent the shoulder 21 and the cover made longer so as to enclose the match packet down to the striking surface |5 thereon. In place of a plastic material, the case could be fabricated from metal or other suitable material.

In operation, the cover of the case is raised while the packet of matches is inserted into the case in such a manner that the ignition surface i5 extends between the two shoulders 21 at the lower end of the case, and the upper end of the packet is beneath the cover 24. The cover is then snapped back to closed position. Before inserting the match packet, it is desirable to tear of! the front portion of the match packet container so that the matches will be exposed. When it is desired to use a match, the cover is swung open about its pivots against the action of the spring portion of the case. A match is extracted and the cover is released to snap shut due to the spring action. The'match can now be ignited by striking on the friction surface. If it is desired to maintain the cover locked in the open position, as for convenience in refilling the case, the cover is opened until the pointed end of the cam thereon engages the spring portion of the case at which time the cover is held in the open position until the pointed end is released, so that the cover will swing shut actuated by the spring member.

A modified form of the invention is shown in Figs. 7 to 9 in which the same reference numerals used in Figs. 1-6 refer to corresponding parts. In this form of the invention, the cover 24 will snap back into the closed position when released and cannot be retained automatically in the open position. The body I6 of the case is similar to that previously described with the exception of the construction of the spring portion 23. The upper end 20' of the spring 23 becomes thicker as indicated at 40, ending in a substantially vertical front surface 4|. The surface 4| curves inwardly and is adapted to be engaged by the cam surface 42 at the upper end of the cover 24. The cam surface 42 is somewhat elliptical shaped in cross section.

The pins 3| extending outwardly at each side of the cover 24 are located near the lower end of the ends of the cam surface 42 of the cover so that when the cover is opened by pivoting the cover about the pins 3|, the cam surface 42 of the cover will engage the surface 4| of the spring 23 forcing it outwardly as indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 8. When the cover is released, the spring 23 will return to its normal position forcing the cover to its closed position.

Fig. 10 shows a form of the invention similar to that shown in Fig. 8 with additional means provided to retain the cover in the fully open position if so desired. This is accomplished by providing a projection 44 on the upper surface of the cam portion 42 of the cover, and an indentation 45 in the surface 4| of the spring 23. The projection 44 and the indentation 45 are so located relative to one another so that when the cover is in the fully open position shown in dotted lines in Fig. 10, the projection 44 engages the indentation 45 and prevents the cover from returning to the closed position until the projection is released.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that various changes may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention and therefore the invention is not limited to what is shown in the drawings and described in the specification but only as indicated in the appended claim.

I claim:

In a match case, a hollow body shaped to hold a packet of matches therein, said hollow body including a back wall, side walls, a top Wall, and a bottom wall, said top wall and the upper portion of said back wall having spaced slots formed therein to form end sections and a center resilient section, the end sections of said top and back walls being formed integral with said side walls, a projecting shoulder at the lower end of each of said side walls extending parallel to said back wall for retaining the lower end of the packet of matches in said match case, an indented shoulder and stop surface positioned above said projecting shoulder, a cover covering the heads of the matches and pivotally mounted on the upper portion of the side walls, the lower surface of said cover contacting said stop surface when in the closed position, a cam formed on the upper end of said cover and provided with a projection, said projection engaging an indentation formed in said, center resilient section so that as the cover is raised the projection on said cam forces the center resilient section of said top and back walls rearwardly against the spring action thereof, said cover being retained in the open position by further pivotal movement of said cover upwardly whereby the projection formed on the cam forces said center resilient section more 6. rearwardly to lock said projection in the indentation in said center resilient section.

ANDREW D. HALL.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 826,464 Anthony July 17, 1906 2,285,836 Rettenmeyer June 9, 1942 2,314,245 Rathbun Mar. 16, 1943 2,356,926 Gits Aug. 29, 1944 2,557,048 Haase June 12, 1951 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 428,819 Great Britain May 20, 1935 582,734 Great Britain Nov. 26, 1946 

